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Could you use a little household portion control?
I'm not talking just food either. I'm wondering, do you really need that big strip of toothpaste on your brush? Do you really need to use another Ziploc for your leftovers? If we used a little less around our households, could it save us a whole lot more?
I think it could.
Both the green movement and the economic push to find more ways of being frugal have had me running water less freely and completing avoiding almost all need for paper towels. Needless to say, I was completely inspired by two articles about implementing a little more portion control in our lives:
- Trent's Happy Minimum post on The Simple Dollar was inspired when his son called him out on his TP overuse. "By the end of the day, I was carrying this idea forward into all sorts of avenues," says Trent. "Instead of grabbing two or three Kleenexes to blow my nose, why not just grab one and use it until I absolutely can’t use it any more, then get another if I need it?"
- Cafe MicheleZ confesses to beauty product excess in her post Beauty Product Portion Control. She then goes on to tell you the proper portions to use on your beauty supplies.
The CafeMom Get Real Recession Guide has been rocking my world. There are so many great tips about saving money, and sometimes that simply means cutting back on what you do. It can add up!
Save money! Cut back on using and spending:
- CafeMom LorisChar in Stretch Your Budget suggests taking shorter showers.
- CafeMom valerie0103, also in Stretch Your Budget, suggests less trips to the store, which can add up to less chances of buying things that aren't needed.
- Frugalize Your Routine via Almost Frugal.
- Look at what you already have via The New Quilt post at Frugal Hacks.
- Celebrity mom Carolyn Kepcher celebrates a savings tip called snowflaking.
+++ What about you? Have you cut back on your household portions?
Comments (7)
This is too funny. I've been telling my three year old lately that I'm going to start charging him for the extra pump of soap that he thinks he needs to get his hands clean. Or that extra baggie to store his snack, when he already has a baggie out. I just refilled our hand soap with half water and half soap so that if he does use an extra pump, at least its not costing me as much!!
Ok the tissue reuse is gross. I grew up doing that and hated it. If you really want to save on tissues, then use a clothe hanky instead.
We've got the tp issue at our house, our kids use too much. I often think about putting it up where they can't reach it so that I can give them the right amount but it seems they go to the bathroom at the most inconvenient times for me. Like when I'm cooking or on the phone or whatever.
Yeah, I'm not going to reuse tissue either. But I am going to rethink pulling off two or three when one can suffice.
We're not wasteful people, period. When I blow my nose, I fold the tissue over repeatedly until I can't anymore. It's not gross, LOL. She didn't say reusing - she said using it as much as you could.
Toilet paper, our septic tank in our rental house is poorly designed and clogs VERY easily, so we have to use very little anyway. We go through a roll of paper towels maybe every 3-4 months since we use washable rags for most everything.
Ugh my husband and I talk about this all the time, lol! You actually only need to use the recommended amounts listed on the backs of bottles to get their full effects, lol! Dime size for face soap, nickle size for shampoo (unless you have really long/thick hair), 1 pump for hand soap, quarter size for liquid body soap, dime size for dish soap... oh I could go on, lol! But I will tell you this much while it may seem like I am being "frugal" as my husband likes to put it... My kids know exactly what the size of a penny, nickle, dime and quarter are, lol! :)
I strongly agree.It hurts me to bad when I am only making only minimum wage.I grew up in a home that we had to use in a bucket and throw it in da woods.USED LEAVES TO WIPE UP AFTER WORDS. Trust me that ain't what you wanted. I felt like I lived in one of the very last days of my ancestors.Just like it was yesterday.There is more to this, but I am going to keep it short only b/c it is a much longer story that I could make a book. But dont be ashame.I am so proud to see tissue and not leaves to wipe a butty.I AM THANKFU L.thank you lord
Okay....to be gross here, but I am a tissue re-user. (I have chronic allergies, so I have a drippy nose ALL YEAR) I prefer a ball of tissue (2-3 tissues), and I blow my nose. Half an hour later when I need to blow again, the tissue is typically dry (it's not from a cold, it's just liquid)--so I use it again. And again. And again. And last, but not least, I use it as TP in the bathroom when it's "all used up". Most of my tissues get used about 4-5 times before it's final use. *shrug* I go thru a lot of tissue, and this makes it worthwhile. (But I am one of those totally crazy frugal people......)